France's presidential elections are only two weeks away. President Sarkozy, who was trailing Socialist challenger Francois Hollande just weeks ago, is now neck-and-neck with his leading rival. One suspects Sarkozy has either made a pact with the devil or should head straight to Monaco's casino.

For French journalists, Villepin is Nicolas Sarkozy's "worst nightmare." The former prime minister belongs to the same political family as Sarkozy. Yet he still decided to run for president to make sure a more socially-committed voice would be heard.

The 73 year-old is struggling to reach 1 percent in the opinion polls, but he keeps soldiering on. Jean-Pierre Chevènement was once a major political figure in France. But now, he is more likely to get the 500 endorsements than poll a lot of votes.